Prior art infusion devices have been developed for drug delivery, angiographic dye injection and precision fluid infusion. In general, such infusion devices only support small delivery volumes (approximately 60 cc) at low (for example, less than 20 psi) to medium (for example, up to 1000 psi) delivery pressures.
A system and method capable of delivering a large volume of fluid at an accurate delivery rate may be desirable, for example, for enriching blood with an oxygen-supersaturated solution to provide regional or systemic support to a patient. Another application of oxygen supersaturated fluid would be delivery downstream of a balloon angioplasty site, such as by perfusion guidewire, to reduce or prevent localized ischemia. For delivery and infusion of gas-supersaturated fluids, such as an oxygen supersaturated solution, a high delivery pressure (for example, 4,000 psi) may be desirable to prevent bubble nucleation or formation. An example of a system for delivering gas supersaturated fluids without bubble formation is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,599,296. When fluid is delivered at high pressures, it is also desirable to provide a safety mechanism for terminating fluid delivery when the delivery pressure exceeds a predetermined limit.
In order to deliver the fluid at a desired volume delivery rate and/or to deliver a desired total volume of the fluid, it is also desirable to provide accurate control of the delivery rate and thus accurate control of the total fluid volume delivered.
In spite of recent advances in the art, for example the above-mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,599,296, there remains a need in the art for a fluid delivery system and method for generating and accurately delivering a large volume of gas-supersaturated fluid. There remains a further need in the art for a system capable of generation and delivery of gas-supersaturated fluid at high delivery pressures in order to prevent or minimize bubble nucleation and formation upon infusion into a patient. There remains yet a further need in the art for a fluid delivery system and method for providing a safety mechanism to protect patients and operators by interalia, terminating the fluid delivery if the delivery pressure exceeds a predetermined limit. There remains yet a further need in the art for a fluid delivery system and method for accurate control of the delivery rate and pressure and thus accurate control of the total fluid volume delivered.